A Christmas release date has been set for Tom Hanks’ forthcoming comedy-drama A Man Called Otto. Based on Fredrik Backman’s novel A Man Called Ove, the film will follow a melancholy widower called Otto who is adamant about adhering to the neighborhood’s rigorous regulations. Desperate with the trauma that his beloved wife Otto left, he plans to commit suicide, only to be persuaded to rethink by many new and unexpected friendships. When the original book was released in 2012, it instantly garnered widespread praise, selling over seven million copies and remaining 77 weeks on the New York Times bestseller list.
Sony Pictures has already announced a Christmas release date for the next movie. A Man Called Otto is scheduled to open on Christmas Day, only days after the highly anticipated Whitney Houston biopic, I Wanna Dance With Somebody. The news comes more than a week after Sony surpassed competitors at the European Project Market at the Berlin Film Festival, grossing an astonishing $60 million.
The comedic film, directed by Marc Forster of World War Z and Finding Neverland, stars Tom Hanks in the self-titled character of Otto. Additionally, the 65-year-old actor will produce the film for SF Studios alongside his wife Rita Wilson, Gary Goetzman, and Fredrik Wikström Nicastro. David Magee, the film’s executive producer, penned the script. The film will also star Rachel Keller, Manuel Garcia Rulfo, and Mariana Trevio. A Man Called Otto is an Americanized adaptation of Hannes Holm’s 2015 adaptation of the Swedish classic. Rolf Lassgrd featured as Ove in the film, which earned two Academy Award nominations.
